John azzimonti



No. 62I,892. Patented Mar. 28, |899.

J. AZZIMNTI.

SHOE.

(Application iled Feb. 15, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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llNiTn STATES PATENT Trice.

JOHN AZZIMONTI, OF NEV YORK, N. Y.

SHOE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 621,892, dated March 28, 1899. Application filed February 15, 1898. Serial No. 670,382. (No model.)

T 0 @ZZ whom it indy concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN AZZIMONTI, a citizen of the Kingdom of Italy, residing in the city, county, and State of N ew York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in ',Shoes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specipcation.

My invention relates to that class of shoes known as dancing-clogs, and it consists in the combination, with such a shoe, of a chambered or hollow heel-piece with a bell or analogous sounder and a striker mounted in the chamber in the heel-piece and adapted to remain therein out of contact with each other while the shoe is at rest or is deliberately moved, as by the action of the foot of the wearer in walking, and to come into contact, and thus produce a resonant sound or note, when the shoe is violently or abruptly moved, as by the motion of the foot of the wearer in stamping or dancing.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of a dancing-clog containing my invention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of the heel-piece of the same on theline m00, Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the heelpiece on the line y y, Fig. 2.

vDancing-clogs, to which my invention particularly relates, are usually formed with a sole A and heel-piece B, homogeneously fash- -ioned out of a single piece of wood or similar hard resonant material, as illustrated in the drawings, and with the upper O attached thereto by means of small nails or tacks, as shown at c. It should, however, be understood that I do not limit my invention to a shoe having the special construction of a dancing-clog, as it may be employed in connection with a shoe or bootvof usual and ordinary form and structure.

In carrying out my invention I combine with the shoe a heel-piece B, which is chambered, as at Z), and within this chambered heel-piece I mount a bell or analogous sounder b anda striker b2, which are adapted to maintain themselves in said chamber out of contact with each other when the shoe is at rest on its sole or is moved with comparative deliberation-as, for example, by the action of the foot of the wearer in walking-and to come into sudden and momentary contact, thereby producing a resonant sound or note, when the shoe is violently or abruptly moved or shaken-as, for example, by the action of the wearers foot in stamping or dancing.

The bell and striker may be arranged in the following manner, to operate as above set forth: The bell may be fixed on a support b3, set in the bottom of the heel-piece, and the striker may be composed of a head or hammer b4, carried by a spring-arm b5, having a flatwise action and reaching over the bell and iixed at its seated end on a ledge or shoulder h6 on a vertical wall of the heel-chamber, as by a pin or screw 67. While I nd this arrangement of the bell and striker preferable for .the performance of their functions, still I do not limit myself thereto, as their positions in the chamber relatively to each other may be reversed from those set forth or otherwise altered without departure from the essential features of the invention. Furthermore, a disk or bar capable of producing a resonant sound or note when struck by the y striker may be substituted for the bell shown in the drawings without substantial variation from the said feature of the invention.

It is desirable to form apertures 198 in the walls of the heel-chamber, preferably in the side walls, as shown, to enhance the audibleness of the sounds produced in the chamber by the bell and striker.

It is apparent that when the bell and striker are arranged and fixed in the said heel-chamber in the manner hereinbefore described and as illustrated in the drawings the spring-arm b5 may be so tensioned as to keep the hammer h4 from contact with the bell when the shoe is at rest or is moved with deliberationas, for example, when the wearer is walkingand to permit the hammer to strike the bell a blow when the shoe is given a violent or abrupt motion or a shock-as, for example, when the wearer is stamping the foot or dancing. The effect when the described devices are combined and operated with a dancingclog is to produce a pleasant musicalnote of considerable resonance with each tap of the clog sole or heel upon the floor.

The chamber b in the heel may be closed at its top by a leather plate b9 to sustain the heel of the wearer.

IOO

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. In a shoe, the combination with the sole, of a chambered heel-piece and a bell or sounder therein, together with a striker carried by a spring-arm adapted to hold theV striker in normal position from contact With, and to vibrate the same to, said bell or sounder; whereby, When a movement of the shoe, as in dancing, is abruptly begun or stopped, the striker will be vibrated to strike a blow on the bell or sounder; substantially as and for the purpose specified.

2. In a shoe, the combination with the sole, of a chambered heel-piece provided with apertures in its Walls, a bell or sounder in said heel-piece, and a striker carried by a spring arm adapted to hold the striker in normal position from contact with, and to vibrate the same to, said bell or sounder; whereby, when the striker is vibrated to the bell or sounder, by a movement of the shoe, as in dancing, the sound-vibrations thereby produced in the heel may be freely communicated to the outside air. y

3. In a shoe the combination Withfthe upper, of a sole and chambered heel-piece integrally formed of a single piece of rigid material, such as Wood, a bell or sounder in said heel-piece and a striker carried by a springarm adapted to hold said striker in normal position from contact with and to vibrate the same toward said bell or sounder; substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4. In a shoe, the combination with the sole, of a chambered heel-piece, a bell or sounder mounted on the bottom thereof, a spring-arm v -piece provided with lateral apertures in its side Walls, together with a bell supported on the heel-chamber bottom, a striker carried above the bell by a spring-arm seated to thc chamber-Wall, and a plate closing the chamber on the upper' side of the heel-piece; substantially as and for the purpose specified.

JOHN AZZ'IMONTI.

Vitnesses:

ARDEN S. FITCH, C. W. BENJAMIN. 

